11.30.12

Steven Harrington is still killing it after many years in the art game. He recently relaunched his website featuring several new works and some great imagery from past gallery shows. He’s a real talent.

08.08.12

Their name sounds very familiar and I may have posted about them long ago or it could be that since I do a lot of apparel work that we overlapped somewhere at some point but regardless of any of that Soup Graphix has recently posted some great illustration work for Nike. It’s lots of fun to look at and might even take you back down memory lane just a bit.

06.12.11

Jason Hernandez is a California born and based artist and designer with a unique artistic vision that intertwines religion, war, popular culture, technology, aliens, astronauts and nazis. He’s an extremely talented artist who somehow makes it all work beautifully.

03.15.11

Illustrator and artist Brian Luong is a man of many talents and he spreads them from paper to screen with such fluidity that there is no telling what he might create next. Whatever it is though, it’s pretty much guaranteed that it will be expertly crafted by a talented hand.

01.06.11

Californian photographer Kim Winderman sent in a link to her portfolio featuring some beautifully shot and composed textural images of different locales around California. There is a kind of ethereal status granted to nature in the images that perpetuates a state of trance-like contemplation. The people in some of Winderman’s photos are used more as emotive texturing to further dramatize the natural surroundings. The work is not dark but more rather dreamlike. Winderman is a talented artist and one to keep watch over.

10.25.10

The New Leaf is a website designed by I Shot Him that helps to explain Prop 19 and what the legalization and taxation of marijuana will do for California. This is a hotly debated subject here in Colorado, especially in Denver where we now have more marijuana dispensaries citywide than Starbucks (yes, that’s true). The problem that a lot of people aren’t seeing is that if legalized under the stipulations of this proposition, the space allowed (only 25 square feet) for growers as well as a wealth of new regulations will seriously cut down on the types and possibly the quality that growers can provide. So it’s not an all together great proposition although many would like to see it legalized to help bring money into the state. My take on the subject for a while has been that big tobacco companies like Phillip Morris are probably waiting in the wings for something like this to be passed so the entire process can be commercialized and we end up buying marijuana at the local liquor store with a six pack of beer. That day might be far off but it would be nice to keep dispensing as independent as possible so long as the product is regulated and meets a list of criteria. It will be interesting to see where this goes and if it even stands a chance of being passed. Definitely a hot button issue for younger voters more than old. But, I seriously believe the day of legalization may not be too far off in the future. Overcoming the social stigma attached to marijuana however is likely a long way off in the future, even if it is one day legalized. There is definitely an age divide on this issue.

Leave a comment and share your opinion. Since this blog reaches a global audience, it would be great to know what those of you out there think about this issue and how it is being regarded outside of the U.S. as well.

10.15.10

Santa Clarita resident and designer/illustrator Bijan Berahimi is cranking out some fun imagery with a hand-crafted touch. He’s also none to shabby at incorporating typography into the visual situation when it’s called for.

08.19.10

Burbank, California-based tee shirt shop Milk & Eggs Co. have got fun and quirky dialed when it comes to their gear. It’s clean, simple, graphic, fun and maybe even a little clever. The combination of all of the above make for some excellent expertly-designed wares. I’m gonna party likes it’s 2012 since that’s the year the world explodes or something like that right?

07.30.10

The Clayton Brothers have thrown some new and as always colorful and inspiring work up at their blog. I am becoming a very big fan of their work and I think they are really transcending that lowbrow scene into genuinely influential contemporary artists. It will be interesting to see how their exhibition schedule evolves in the coming years and if that notion is reflected in where they are asked to show.

07.16.10

Matt McMullen is the original creator of the Real Doll. If you haven’t heard of them, they are high-priced sex dolls that are disturbingly (well depended on where your tastes lean) realistic. It’s easy to look at the dolls and think, wow that is pretty weird, but it another thing all together to realize just how much time and attention to detail goes into their creation. It’s really an amazing sculpture that is the output of genuine craftsmanship. This is an insightful short little documentary, expertly put together and super entertaining to watch.

04.30.10

Chino Hills, California based photographer Philip Kupferschmidt has a cinematic eye for capturing momentary slices of quiet that play like scenes from a larger story. I absolutely love the photo above but I don’t think he tipped that cat after using the restroom and perhaps that explains the expression.

03.20.10

Ryan Schude has spent the last ten years moving between Chicago, San Francisco, San Diego and LA. All the while he has been building a tremendous portfolio of photography including some amazing set piece imagery that turn everyday environments into unique works of art.

03.09.10

Rob and Christian Clayton, the amazing Clayton Brothers who share a bit of a Denver, Colorado heritage have updated their website with some of their spectacular new paintings. They now reside in Pasadena, California (come home guys). Count me as a fan. Their use of color and just flat out imaginative subject matter is absolutely beautiful.

08.27.09

Isotrope Design was established in 2008 by sisters Micol and Sael Bartolucci. Their furniture is almost less furniture and more art. The furniture pieces bear a strong influence from topography and utilize materials that come together to create something genuinely unique and unarguably beautiful. I would kill to own one of their pieces, but highly doubt I could ever afford to.